Helvetia to Expand Switzerland Presence With Two Acquisitions

Helvetia Group said it will acquire two Swiss insurers from Allianz Suisse in a move that will boost its nonlife volume by more than 25% and add 6% to its life insurance volume.

The Switzerland-based multiple-line insurer said it will acquire Alba General Insurance Co. Ltd. and Phenix Insurance Co. Ltd. and Phenix Life Insurance Co. Ltd. from the Allianz SE affiliate for 302 million Swiss francs (229.1 million euros). The purchase will be financed from Helvetia's equity capital. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter this year, subject to regulatory approvals.

Helvetia expects to complete the integration process for the new acquisitions within three years.

"The two companies complement Helvetia's portfolio in an ideal manner," said Philipp Gmur, chief executive of Helvetia Switzerland, in a statement. "In addition, the acquisitions allow Helvetia to grow its distribution capacity, thereby increasing its geographic profile, especially in the French-speaking region of Switzerland."

According to group CEO Stefan Loacker, the acquisitions mark a "successful conclusion" to the group's 2007-2010 strategy period and "pave the way for the new Helvetia 2015+ strategy."

In 2009, Helvetia acquired French transport insurer CEAT from Swiss Life Holding for an undisclosed amount (BestWire, June 10, 2009).

Manfred Knof, CEO of Allianz Suisse, said in a separate statement that "by means of this sale, the structures of the Allianz Suisse Group will be simplified further. Allianz Suisse Versicherungen, Allianz Suisse Leben and CAP Rechtsschutzversicherung today form an operational collective, whereas Alba and Phenix operate as independent units."

Excluding Alba and Phenix, Allianz Suisse had premium revenue of about 3.8 billion francs, Knof said. It has 3,650 employees and provides insurance coverage and financial security products to more than 930,000 private individuals and more than 100,000 companies.

Headquartered in Basel, Alba is a nonlife insurer active throughout Switzerland, said Helvetia. It recorded premium volume of 131.8 million francs and a profit of 26 million francs in 2009.

Phenix is based in Lausanne and provides personal and nonlife insurance. It had premium volume of 87.1 million francs, 39.8 million francs of which came from nonlife insurance. It posted a 1.8 million franc profit in 2009.

With about 4,500 employees and more than 2 million customers, Helvetia has offices in Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Spain, Italy and France. The company said it also routes some of its investment and financing activities through subsidiaries and fund companies in Luxembourg and Germany.

Allianz SE currently has a Best's Financial Strength Rating of A+ (Superior).

(By David Pilla, international editor, BestWeek: [email protected])